A three-panel group of judges sentenced Joran Van der Sloot to 28 years in prison for the murder of Stephany Flores after Van der Sloot pled guilty to the 21-year-old Peruvian woman’s murder.

The panel also fined Van der Sloot $75,000 in Lima for the murder which occurred five years to the day after American teen Natalee Holloway went missing in Aruba.

Under the Peruvian penal code the murderer could be eligible for parole after 14 years if he serves his time with good behavior and participates in work and study programs.

Van der Sloot was said to be sweating profusely when he entered the courtroom in a green T-shirt as he constantly wiped tears from his eyes before saying he was “truly sorry” for the killing of Stephany Flores. He then said he had ”wanted from the first moment to confess sincerely” to the killing.

In one of the most despicable moments of the case his lawyer then claimed he had only killed Flores as a result of an ”extreme psychological trauma” felt after the fallout from the Holloway disappearance case for which he is still the prime suspect.

In the meantime the Holloway family is still attempting to have Van der Sloot extradited to the United States where he would face charges in Natalee Holloway’s disappearance. Van der Sloot has already been indicted on extortion charges after he offered to lead the family to the girls body in exchange for a cash payout.

After the verdict Ricardo Flores, father to the murder victim complained to the court that Van der Sloot has been receiving special accommodations in prison.

“A jail isn’t a 5-star hotel,” Ricardo told reporters. “Let’s hope the authorities take that into account and not just in our case.”

“Since the first day we’ve been complaining about the excessive privileges”

Flores said he would provide proof of the prisoners favorable living conditions on Monday. While unconfirmed it has long been thought that Van der Sloot has his own television and gaming console in his cell.

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Joran Van der Sloot Gets 28 Years In Prison For Murder Of Stephany Flores is a post from: The Inquisitr

Not too long ago, Inquisitr told you that Eastman Kodak Co. is experiencing financial troubles. Now we’re reporting that the company is looking to its patent portfolio to help fund a comeback. Kodak filed lawsuits against Apple Inc. and HTC Corp. today citing infringement related to digital photography technology developed by the 131-year-old company.

Specifically, Kodak’s lawsuits accuse smartphone makers of using inventions covered by four of the company’s patents related to image transmission and sharing. Also, HTC is infringing upon a fifth patent regarding image previewing, a topic already in the middle of a U.S. International Trade Commission case against Apple and Research in Motion Ltd.

Kodak is predicted to experience its fourth annual net loss in a row, and has been putting up its imaging patents for sale in an attempt to save the company. Kodak is also following the Apple-RIM trade commission case closely, and hopes that it will generate $1 billion in new revenue.

The case has been met with several delays, with a decision on the books for September. In the meantime, Kodak filed patent complaints at the trade commission in Washington today in an attempt to block Apple and HTC imports, such as the iPad, iPhone, the Flyer tablet and the Wildfire S phone.

It may seem shady, and for good reason. However, Laura Quatela, Kodak’s COO, said this in a statement:

“We’ve had numerous discussions with both companies in an attempt to resolve this issue, and we have not been able to reach a satisfactory agreement, [...] Our primary interest is not to disrupt the availability of any product but to obtain fair compensation for the unauthorized use of our technology.”

Among the devices deemed offensive and infringe-y by Kodak are Apple’s iPad 2, iPhone and iPod Touch, HTC’s tablets and phones, including the Flyer, EVO View 4G, Jetstream, Vivid, Amaze 4g, Desire, Hero S, Rezound, Rhyme, Sensation 4G and Wildfire S.

Holy infringement, Batman.

Do you think Kodak has good reason for its case against Apple Inc. and HTC Corp. or is this just a last-ditch effort to save a dying company?

Kodak’s Last Stand? Company Sues Apple for Patent Infringement is a post from: The Inquisitr

Amazon Kindle case designer M-Edge has filed a lawsuit against Amazon for what they claim is anti-competitive attempts to silence a rival.

The company claims in the filing that Amazon used unfair competition and false advertising along with “interfering with customers” and violating a case design patent.

Under the lawsuit M-Case says Amazon breached a three-year contract when they asked for a 15 percent cut in November 2009 then two months later hiked that rate to 32 percent while threatening to pull the product if M-Edge refused the deal.

M-Edge held out until May when Amazon said they would “retaliate” against the company by “playing” with search results, effectively hiding the company’s top-selling product while still technically keeping the product on the website.

In a further anti-competitive move Amazon is believed to have purposefully kept M-Case out of approva Kindle accessory designer lists to bury results and then lied about M-Case products being out of stock to slow sales.

M-Case says they eventually swallowed $6.5 million in reduced sales at the risk of losing all their business.

The case manufacturer has also claimed in their filing that Amazon violated a patent they own which in turn gave Amazon motive to shut down a direct competitor.

This isn’t the first time Amazon has been accused of acting as a bait-and-switch pricing partner, during their free App giveaway for Android developers they promised to pay for apps downloaded through the Amazon Appstore but later renegged on that promise.

Amazon is not currently commenting on any pending accusations or the lawsuit filed by M-Case.

Are you surprised to learn that Amazon is choosing to treat it’s third-party sellers and developers like second-class citizens?

M-Case Sues Amazon, Says Company Squeezed Them For Profits, Stole Patented Design is a post from: The Inquisitr

A Honda driving customer in California has filed a lawsuit against the automobile manufacturer and the method she used has allowed her to avoid fighting against lawyers all together.

Under California state law the driver was able to file a small-claims lawsuit over her 2006 Civic hybrid and because of the nature of the claim Honda must send a company representative to court rather than a high-profile team of lawyers who are capable of scaring off potential lawsuits.

According to the Los Angeles Times the case has the potential to become a “small-claims flash mob.”

What may be worse for the car manufacturer and other companies is the fact that other small-claims lawsuits may soon follow suit as Heather Peters has started a website (Here) which shows potential lawsuit seekers how to file a small claims lawsuit of their own.

Under a proposed class-action deal Honda would pay ’03-’09  Civic hybrid owners $100 each and give them rebate vouchers for a new vehicle purchase, Honda would also pay lawyer fees totaling $8.5 million. Peters is asking Honda owners to reject the deal and instead take the company to small claims court where a stronger message can be sent as the company deals with hundreds and potentially thousands of small claims lawsuits.

[Image via Darren Brode / Shutterstock.com]

Honda Car Owner Sues Company, Manages To Avoid Lawyers is a post from: The Inquisitr

Lady Gaga is having a really hard time finding assistants that can keep up with her busy schedule, while also putting up with her strange lifestyle and crazy wardrobe choices.

Gaga’s former assistant Jennifer O’Neill is suing the pop star, claiming that she is owed nearly $380,000 in unpaid overtime after 13 months handling a $75,000-a-year job.

According to the New York Post. O’Neill claims that she was at Gaga’s beck and call day and night, in some cases performing odd tasks such as ensuring “the promptness of a towel following a shower and (served) as a personal alarm clock to keep [Gaga] on schedule.

Gaga’s rep says the claims are “completely without merit” and will be fought in a court of law.

This isn’t the first run-in Lady Gaga has had with a former employee, her last personal assistant said Gaga didn’t want to be alone most nights and would ask that her employee sleep in the same bed as her. That same former PA says they would also share showers and makeup time.

Given Lady Gaga’s eccentric lifestyle I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if the stories of her strange employment methods were true. Do you think working for Gaga would be a dream job or a complete nightmare?

[Image via Anthony Ricci / Shutterstock.com]

Lady Gaga Sued By Former Assistant, Details Strange Working Conditions is a post from: The Inquisitr

Filed under “Jane Doe” the actress claims that IMDB.com (owned by Amazon.com) used her credit card information to obtain her age and then listed her real age on her actress profile.

According to the Hollywood Reporter the US District Court judge overseeing the case says the “injury she fears” for her lie, being blacklisted in Hollywood, is not “severe enough to justify permitting her to proceed anonymously.”

The judge has given “Jane Doe” 14 days to re-file her lawsuit using her real name or drop the case.

Of course if she reveals her real name it will likely end her career (if she ever had one to begin with – we still don’t know who she is!) as studios realize she has been untruthful about her age in the first place.

Do you think this is a ridiculous case to begin with or should the Jane Doe plaintiff be allowed to proceed anonymously with her personal information claims against IMDb.com?

Actress Suing IMDb Over Age Reveal Must Provide Her Name Or Drop Lawsuit is a post from: The Inquisitr

The Associated Press is reporting that Robert Middleton was set on fire when he was 8 years old and has been in the hospital ever since.  Well, as fate would have it he succumbed to his wounds 12 years later and died when he was 20.  An attorney for the family of Middleton filed a wrongful death suit against  Don Willburn Collins for setting Robert on fire 12 years ago.

Collins is in prison currently for an unrelated sex crime.  Neither he nor any attorney representing him was present for the trial.  The Texas Department of Correction has no comment on the matter.

The family knows that this verdict is symbolic and none of the money will actually ever be paid.  The wanted to make a statement by asking for more money than the second largest verdict in history, the $145 Billion dollars awarded to the State of Florida when it won its suit against the tobacco companies. The Jury was happy to comply.

Should this verdict have made it this far or is it a colossal waste of taxpayers money?

Texas Family Awarded $150 Billion For Man Being Burned Alive is a post from: The Inquisitr

Cablevision on Monday dropped their lawsuit against Verizon. The lawsuit was filed after Verizon ran several commercials in which they claimed the cable provider was blatantly lying about the actual speed of their broadband service.

The Verizon ads claimed that Cablevision only delivered their advertised internet speeds 59 percent of the time during peak hours, a finding that came directly from a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) study.

The study, conducted in August 2011, found that the company failed to deliver their promised internet data during peak hours, however that study was called “outdated” before Verizon ran their speed based ads.

On December 12 Verizon filed papers with the court in which they promised to change certain aspects of their ads to reflect the complaints made against them by Cablevision. According to the filing Verizon will not call the FCC report “new” or “recent” in the ads. Verizon has also promised not to state that the study reflects Cablevision’s “current speed performance.”

The Verizon ads came at a time when Verizon took issue with Cablevision calling their own network the “fastest” when they believe the Verizon FiOS network is far superior.

While ISP’s often make claims about each others speed benchmarks this is one of the first times a major lawsuit was filed over those claims.

An out of court settlement has been reach and both sides have refused to release details regarding that settlement.

Do you think Verizon FiOS is a faster and more reliable network than the system currently offered by Cablevision?

Cablevision Ends Verizon False Advertising Lawsuit is a post from: The Inquisitr

Things are not going well for Jersey Shore Power Midget Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi.  The New York Post is reporting that the reality star is being hit with a $7 Million dollar lawsuit accusing her of sabotaging a merchandising deal they had together by negotiating with other companies without their permission. 

Snooki signed a deal with SRG Ventures to launch a wide range of Snooki themed products including sunglasses, swimwear and other products. She had filed suit against them earlier this year for failing to live up to their side of the bargain.

The Jersey shore has been embroiled in controversy for many years now.  While they were filming a season of the MTV reality show in Italy, Snooki was arrested for public intoxication.  There have been episodes of the show where fights have broken out, most notably when one of the show’s female cast was punched in the face by a man at an altercation at a bar.

Also from the Jersey Shore cast, Mike Sorrentino, known on the show as The Situation,  filed a $4 million dollar lawsuit against Abercrombie and Fitch claiming they illegally used his name and popularity to sell their clothes without receiving his permission

In a bizarre twist, Abercrombie and Fitch had asked the actor to please NOT wear their clothing so their core audience would not associate their clothing with his brand.  The Situation filed the lawsuit because he claims he never received any compensation from the clothing retailer and they used his fame to sell clothing. 

What do you  think about Snooki’s lawsuit?

Jersey Shore Star Snooki Hit With $7 Million Dollar Lawsuit is a post from: The Inquisitr

An Israeli Entrepreneur is betting that Facebook would not want to sue someone with the same name as their inventor and CEO Mark Zuckerberg.  He is so confident of this that he is changing hi name to, you guessed it, Mark Zuckerberg.

A s reported by ZDNet.com, Israeli Businessman Rotem Guez was threatened with a lawsuit over allegations that his company had violated the terms of service of the social networking behemoth.

Guez’s response, “if you want to sue me you will have to sue Mark Zuckerberg!”.

Guez had formed a company which sell Facebook “likes”. He got people to like his client’s pages by offering them free content from his other sites, which is a clear violation of Facebook’s terms of service. Facebook had originally sent several “Cease and Desist letters threatening that if Guez didn’t halt his activities the company would be sues.  They served him with a lawsuit earlier this year.

Guez has counter sued saying Facebook has hurt his business and kicked him off for no apparent reason.

Do you think Facebook will sue Mark Zuckerberg?

Is Mark Zuckerberg Being Sued By Facebook? is a post from: The Inquisitr

Jury members involved in a $1 billion federal antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft have revealed that they are close to a verdict.

The lawsuit stems from a Novell Inc. filed suit in 2004 in which the company claims Microsoft duped them into developing a new version of their WordPerfect writing program for Windows 95. Later Microsoft would pull the plug on the program, giving their own Microsoft Word program a dominating share of the marketplace.

In his testimony during the month of November Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said the program was pulled because Novell was incapable of creating a compatible WordPerfect program in time for the Windows 95 OS premiere. Gates also testified that Microsoft Word was a more competent program than the Novell created application.

Jurors involved in the case said their main goal now was to determine whether Novell was entitled to damages and that those decisions were nearly ready to be read.

Do you think Microsoft should be forced to hand over money to Novell if the WordPerfect program was in fact deemed less competent in the word processing space?

Jury Close To Verdict In $1 Billion Microsoft Lawsuit is a post from: The Inquisitr

Love has been renting a $27,000-a-month home in the West Village area of New York City, but the owner of the home, Donna Lyon, is not happy with how the rocker has treated her property. Love has now been asked to leave the house.

Lyon’s complaints are varied. She says her famous tenant has redecorated the four-storey house against her will, which Lyon claims has “ruined” the property, previously “made beautiful” by interior designer and former resident Steven Gambrel. It’s fair to say Lyon was not won over by Love’s choice of interior design tastes:

“Courtney has wallpapered and painted a large portion of the property without my consent. I learned about this when I wanted to sell the house and had photographs taken. They sent me the brochure and I said, ‘This can’t be my property.’ I came to New York to see it and I was horrified by what she had done. The walls that had been hand-painted and glazed were ruined, covered in damask wallpaper and ice-blue paint.”

Lyon also says Love is $50,000 behind on her rent, and almost razed the house to the ground when she accidentally set curtains on fire with a candle. “I got a call from her accountant, who said, ‘Miss Love is fine,’ which I was glad to hear, but I thought, ‘What about the house?”’ Lyon told the New York Post.

The landlady says  it will take 12 weeks and US$100,000 to restore the home to its original state. Her lawyer Norman Flitt has said Love’s alleged actions are “tantamount to destroying a work of art.”

A court date of December 21 has been set. The rock star’s representative has not commented.

Courtney Love Evicted After ‘Destroying’ House is a post from: The Inquisitr

American Airlines and their food provider Sky Chefs are being sued for $1 million by a Miami family who claims that their family member became sick and then died after eating a chicken meal provided by the food provider and airline.

According to the family Othon Cortes was headed home from Barcelona when they ordered a chicken meal, by the time they had reached their connecting flight in New York they were experiencing “clear outward manifestation of severe physical illness.”

According to CNN the family says Cortes was experiencing nausea, shortness of breath and a cardiac “event” by the second flight, forcing American Airlines to make an emergency landing in Virginia.

By the time the plane reached the airport Cortes was already dead.

Sky Chefs, which offers in-flight meals for more than 300 airlines has asked that their involvement in the lawsuit be dismissed since they claim to have not catered the flight in question.

In the meantime officials at American Airlines have not yet commented on the passengers illness and their involvement in the event.

I’m typically not worried about Airline food killing me but I try to avoid the cardboard tasting meals whenever I can.  Are you afraid to eat airline food after reading about this lawsuit?

[Image via Christopher Parypa / Shutterstock.com]

Family Claims Airline Food Killed Family Member, Files $1 Million Lawsuit is a post from: The Inquisitr

In 2004 pharmaceutical drug maker Merck pulled the painkiller Vioxx from the market after evidence showed that the drug doubled the risk of heart attacks and stroke. Following the drugs removal the company in 2007 paid $4.85 billion to settle nearly 50,000 Vioxx-related lawsuits and today the company has agreed to one final $950 million payment.

The Justice Department on Tuesday announced that Merck will pay $321.6 million in criminal fines and $628.3 million as part of a civil settlement agreement.

Following their payments the company will also have a misdemeanor placed on their records for marketing Vioxx as a rheumatoid arthritis drug before the FDA offered their approval.

The current lawsuit noted that Merck provided false, unproven and often misleading statements about Vioxx’s safety when speaking with doctor’s and Medicaid officials.

Speaking directly about today’s settlement Merck officials say the deal does not constitute an admission of liability regarding the drug and any wrongdoing at the company. The U.S. Government has also said that there is no basis to conclude that Merck’s upper management were involved in the various violations that were discussed during the company’s settlement agreement.

As a final part of their settlement offer the company will now be supervised by a group of governmental watchdogs to ensure future drug practices do not follow the same nefarious course.

Do you think the Vioxx issue is finally over with now that users and the government have been paid out billions of dollars over issues relating directly to the drugs negative side effects which in some cases included death?

[Vioxx molecular structure image via ShutterStock.com]

Drug Maker Merck Resolves Outstanding Vioxx Claims With $950 Million Payment is a post from: The Inquisitr

Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been ordered by a federal judge in South Carolina to perform 40 hours of community service after the prize fighter failed to give his deposition in a recent court case. Mayweather said he was recuperating form injuries he sustained during a fight however it was later learned he was actually partying at a nightclub the night before he was set to appear in court.

For his community service Mayweather Jr. will be placed with the Las Vegas Habitat for Humanity Project where he must complete his 40 hours of work before the end of January. If his work is not completed in the allotted time U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Anderson Jr. has promised further penalties.

The lawsuit stems from a claim by Anthony Dash that Mayweather, his production company and World Wrestling Entertainment sampled Dash’s music without his permission when Mayweather performed for the WWE in 2008 and 2009.

The original deposition was set for the July date but was moved to the end of September after Mayweather’s lawyers asked for more time since the fighter was training for a match.

Three days before he was set to appear for his deposition Mayweather asked for a delay to recover from injuries, Mayweather claimed his doctor told him to remove stress until results from his MRI were revealed. Mayweather’s lawyer insisted Mayweather was not partying up until the time that Dash’s lawyers provided video proof from the Echelon 3000 club outside Atlanta where he was seen throwing money into the crowd and burning bills.

Judge Anderson after giving Mayweather community service ordered Mayweather to pay Dash’s lawyer expenses cause by the delay.

In his decision to order Mayweather to community service rather than issuing a fine Anderson wrote:

“At the parties in question, Mayweather can be seen burning money, allegedly one-hundred dollar bills, while in another video he throws money into the crowd. Mayweather often advertises himself using the moniker ‘Money Mayweather’ and his production company is Philthy Rich Records. Suffice it to say that Mayweather has substantial personal wealth.”

Perhaps he can do some heavy lifting on the job site to get his training in, unless of course he continues to act like an entitled brat and comes up with new lies to avoid his court order.

Floyd Mayweather Jr Acts Like Entitled Brat, Sanctioned By Federal Judge is a post from: The Inquisitr

A Manhattan groom has sued his photographer over what he calls horrible wedding photographs that ruined his special day. If the lawsuit and story ended there it wouldn’t be the first of it’s kind we have witnessed but it takes a far stranger turn.

According to the New York Times the man waited six years to file his lawsuit and now he wants the company to recreate his entire wedding with a bride he divorced last year.

Not only are the bride and groom no longer a couple the bride would have to fly in from somewhere in Latvia to recreate the marriage that eventually led to the pain of divorce something she can’t be forced to do.

Todd J. Remis of Manhattan is asking for $4,100 to pay for the photographs plus an additional $48,000 to recreate his wedding which would include flying the weddings principals to New York so their photographs can be re-shot by a different photography studio.

In another amusing twist Justice Doris Ling-Cohan of State Supreme Court in Manhattan dismissed most of the complaint but allowed part of the case to move forward in regards to examining a possible “breach of contract.” In her January opinion she quoted lyrics from Barbra Streisand’s classic “The Way We Are” in which she says:

“This is a case in which it appears that the ‘misty watercolor memories’ and the ‘scattered pictures of the smiles … left behind’ at the wedding were more important than the real thing,” the judge wrote. “Although the marriage did not last, plaintiff’s fury over the quality of the photographs and video continued on.”

The photo shown above was taken by the defendant H & H Photographers and features Milena Grzibovska and Todd J. Remis during their wedding six years ago.

I personally don’t see anything wrong with the photograph shown above, do you think it warrants a re-shoot?

Groom Sues Photographer To Have Wedding Recreated [Really Strange Lawsuit] is a post from: The Inquisitr

The suit, brought by one Marc Aisen, was uncovered by RadarOnline and accuses Kutcher, Moore, Madonna and other Kabbalah members of racketeering and “conspiracy to engage in a pattern of racketeering activity.”

Filed on March 29th, it states:

“Mr. Kutcher made a media circus out of his Kabbalah wedding to actress and hardcore Kabbalah cult member, Demi Moore, who is a longtime friend of the defendant Ms. Ciccone. As the ‘First Couple’ of organized Kabbalah, the ‘wedding’ presided over by defendant and alleged fraudster, Yehuda Berg — which I am pointing out again was not a private family affair, as all parties used it as a publicity stunt and invited media attention — was not a legal union, nor is the marriage according to California law. Nor is the myth that there is such a thing as a traditional Kabbalah wedding as I can’t seem to find evidence in any book that such a ceremony was ever performed in history. It was a way to put a glamorous face on the weird witches which is antisocial in their every manifestation.”

In short, it suggests that as there is no such thing as a Kabbalah wedding, Moore and Kutcher remain technically unmarried.

However, the roots of the case run deeper. It appears Aisen – who is representing himself – designed a $500 necklace for Madonna, on the proviso that she credit him when she wore it. Aisen claims Madge was photographed wearing said jewelry, but failed to give credit.

In his bid for revenge over the necklace snub, Aisen (who is not a Kabbalah follower, but Jewish) began researching Kabbalah and found:

“[...] the Kabbalah Centre is actually a militant and fanatical cult behind which is a racketeering conspiracy.”

And bingo, one lawsuit questioning just how legally binding the Kutcher/Moore union is.

Kabbalah Lawsuit: Demi and Ashton Marriage ‘Not Legal’ is a post from: The Inquisitr

Lindsay Lohan will be back in court on Wednesday for a progress report on her probation. Lohan was charged with stealing a $2,500 necklace last January and some insiders believe she could be in for more trouble for failing to meet court ordered requirements.

Lohan has recently claimed that she can’t afford her weekly psychologist sessions and she has barely touched her 360 hours of community service at a Downtown Women’s Center after she was “mistreated” by the staff, or so says a TMZ insider:

“The staff was really mean to her from the second she arrived…she did everything she was asked to do while performing her court-ordered community service at the L.A. center over the past few months… and NEVER showed up late.”

For the record staffers say Lohan hardly ever showed up and when she did it was never for the required 4-hour period.

After being reassigned to work at the American Red Cross the actress has only completed 21 of 339 hours, the rest of those hours must be completed by May 2012.

When Lohan last met with Judge Stephanie Sautner in May she was warned that failure to meet court orders could place her behind bars.

If held in contempt of court on Wednesday Lindsay Lohan could face up to 18 months behind bars in a state correctional facility.

In the meantime the spoiled former A-Lister is claiming that she is fulfilling therapy sessions with phone conferences. It’s funny how Lohan is always the victim and never the problem, at least in her own mind.

Lindsay Lohan Probation Hearing On Wednesday Could Spell Trouble is a post from: The Inquisitr

Last year, an innocent 40-year-old man was killed when an eight-time felon crashed into his car at the end of a high speed chase with officers from the City of Federal Way. Now, the estate of Douglas Simmons III is suing the City of Federal Way, the state Department of Corrections, and the felon who crashed into his car and killed him.

Virginia Ramsey, the 8-time felon who crashed into Simmons’ car, had a series of probation violations prior to the high speed chase on July 26, 2010. The wrongful death lawsuit says that correction officers could have arrested Ramsey earlier and avoided the incident.

According to the News Tribune, the lawsuit also says that officers should have ended the chase down the Pacific Highway as Ramsey was driving recklessly.

Ramsey pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, vehicular assault and attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle. She is currently serving a 24 year prison sentence.

According to the original news report, Simmons was bringing his girlfriend to the airport around the time that police spotted Ramsey in a parking lot. When police approached, Ramsey took off down the Pacific Highway.

Police pursued Ramsey down the highway. The chase ended when Ramsey ran a red light and hit Simmons’ car. Simmons died instantly, while his girlfriend suffered critical injuries.

Should the police be responsible for Simmons’ death? What happened to Simmons is tragic, but if his estate wins the lawsuit, won’t it make it harder for police to pursue criminals?

Simmons’ estate is seeking unspecified damages for medical bills, loss of employment, and emotional damage.

City of Federal Way Sued For Wrongful Death of Douglas Simmons III is a post from: The Inquisitr

Joseph Hyungmin Son, 40, best known for his bit role as the shoe throwing bad guy in the Austin Powers movie was convicted and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole on Friday after being found guilty of torture and sexual assault.

Son was involved in the 1990 Christmas Eve gang rape of a then 19-year-old woman who was out walking her dog.

The victim said during her testimony:

“This sad excuse of a human fed off the terror he inflicted to my body, mind and spirit that night.”

During the case Deputy District Attorney Eric Scarbrough called the man a “sexual sadist” who gained his pleasure by watching others suffer. Son apparently told the woman while raping her that she was going to die.

Before the verdict was handed down Darren Thompson, attorney for the defense, acknowledged that his client had sexually assaulted the woman, revealing that the men had hid their identity by using false names and placing a jacket over her head.

The victim told the court:

“For every injury he sadistically created on my skin, the more he reveled in the moment,” while adding, “Every time he struck with his gun, his fist or while kicking me, the more violent he grew He made me feel like I was being eaten alive when he bit me with no remorse in sight.”

Austin Powers Actor Sentenced To Life In Prison For Torture, Sexual Assault is a post from: The Inquisitr